Motorist's Car and Girlfriend Catch Fire, 911 Operator Laughs

October 2, 2013

(TUCSON, Ariz.) — The Pima County Sheriff’s Office has apologized after an Arizona motorist called 911 to report his girlfriend had been burned in a car fire — only to have the emergency operator laugh during his call.

Lalo Delgado told ABC News’ Tucson, Ariz., affiliate KGUN-TV that his girlfriend caught fire after his car did during a recent road trip. The recording of the call has gone public.

“My car just kinda caught on fire, my girlfriend caught on fire,” a nervous Delgado says on the tape.

The female operator responded with, “Is your girlfriend still on fire?” and after Delgado said no, the operator can be heard chuckling.

“It’s hilarious, huh?” an angered Delgado can be heard saying.

The operator denied she was laughing at his situation, but this did little to cool off the situation.

In fact, Delgado called the operator back to make sure she “took him seriously” and sent help. First responders had been dispatched.

While Delgado’s girlfriend recovers, the sheriff’s office insists the response time wasn’t affected, but the department was still in damage control mode.

“Certainly I can understand why he was upset. I would be too.” said Capt. Jim Berry. “We did not perform as I expect or the citizens of this county expect us to…We’re going to correct that.”